Page 41

ROLL TIDE, BABY

SYDNEY

“Be faster, Calvin. Get those feet moving!”

I wink at Thad when Brick yells at him, then duck the punch he throws in frustration. “He’s right, you know. You need to work on foot speed for hand-to-hand when you aren’t shifted.”

The bear growls in irritation and I dance away, moving out of range, so he has to follow me. Thad and Huck have sparred with me many times during the past several years, which I told our professors. We’re all too familiar with one another’s moves, and it’s obvious when we’re able to anticipate what’s coming next.

“Thad, switch with Whitmore. You two are doing more circling than landing blows. That won’t help anyone.”

Thank fuck Lancaster sees it; I need to be challenged if I don’t have supe powers yet.

The vampire strolls over slowly, bare-chested in low slung black joggers and sneakers. I swallow hard as my eyes rake over his muscled yet lithe form up to his red eyes. Of course, he’s bone dry, unlike the rest of us, because his kind doesn’t sweat. It’s unfair as fuck and I hate him just a little more for it. “You won’t be fast enough.”

I snort, getting into position as he switches with Thad. The bear looks disgruntled as he moves to take Sebastian’s place with Rory, and I don’t blame him. Rory is quick for a decent-sized guy, and he definitely has had some formal training. He’s not as good as Sebastian or Elias, but he’s good competition. “That remains to be?—”

Before I can finish, Sebastian has me pinned to a wall with his hand on my throat gently. Our bodies are pressed together in a way that’s absolutely sinful, and I look at him indignantly as he smirks. One brow arches as he says, “You were saying?”

“That’s cheating. You didn’t even call it,” I growl as I try to ignore the throbbing in my body as his frame grips mine.

Rolling his eyes, the vampire flashes a fang, licking it with a smug glee. “Enemies in the Games will not warn you before they attack, Sydney. Fairness is not mandated in our world, and the other players will not behave with honor.”

I hate when this asshole is right.

“Fine,” I grit out as I push at his chest. The skin under my palms is cool, but the muscles are firm as fuck. It makes me heat up from head to toe, and I glare when he doesn’t let go. “Let me go and we’ll go again, dickface.”

Sebastian chuckles, his expression still full of pleased egotism as he looks me in the eye with his crimson stare. “You’re not scared. That’s interesting.”

Definitely not frightened, but I’m sure as hell not telling him what I’m feeling in this position. “Of course not. We’re just sparring, Whitmore.”

His fingers flex against the column of my neck, squeezing a tiny bit until I feel the pressure. “Not even now?”

I can’t respond; I’m too busy tamping down my response, so I just give him a dirty look. When he finally lets go, I give his chest another shove and move away. “You’re such an asshole. I don’t know how you stand yourself, much less how anyone else does.”

“Oh, I have skills people enjoy,” he drawls as he wanders back into the sparring area slowly. “They more than make up for my occasionally abrasive behavior.”

Somehow, I believe him, but he doesn’t need to know that.

“Let’s go again,” I reply as I drop into my stance again. “And this time, let me work up to your stupid vampire tricks. I’ll get there if you actually work with me.”

“I highly doubt that,” he counters as he grins. “But we can try.”

Now it’s a challenge and I’ll get there if it kills me.

By the time the class is over, I feel like overcooked spaghetti. That damn bloodsucker stayed with me the entire fucking time, pushing me past every limit I thought I had. He was intent on driving me up the goddamn wall with his taunts and lack of exhaustion. Worse than that, he successfully beat me so many times that a lesser person with no pent-up fury would have given up. I, however, let the eruption of heat he made simmer inside my body with every one of his purposefully intimate dominations fuel me to continue fighting back.

The hotter he made me, the harder I fought back—I don’t know if he realized that or if it was just a side benefit , though.

When Lancaster tells us to check our devices for the post-session break downs, I groan audibly from my spot on the bench. I’m drenched in sweat, feeling disgusting, and definitely not ready to read about my abject failure to beat that jackass even once. We have an all team lecture after this, so I’m definitely going to make use of the showers before we get crammed into a room full of other supes.

“I’m headed for the showers. No way I’m going to that shit without a quick rinse,” I mutter dejectedly. No one responds, so I limp to the locker room to grab my toiletry basket out of my locker. Once I have it, I grab an embroidered towel, sneering at the FSHA logo angrily before I choose the first stall I see.

It’s clean and obviously newly installed, as there’s a bench for my basket, hooks for my clothes, and fancy looking showerheads. The suite has a bathroom like this and it was quite an experience using it for the first time, compared to the communal bathrooms in my apartment before the selection. I sigh, shaking my head as I feel guilt at the pampering we’re receiving while others suffer in this camp and all the others. Logically, I know that’s nothing I can control, nor can I refuse to bathe or eat in protest.

But it sucks and I feel like a traitor sometimes, despite our grand plans to fight our way to a revolution that will save those people.

“Stop blaming yourself for things you have no control over.”

My eyes widen when the voice echoes in the shower area and I hear another rainfall start-up next to me. I’m definitely bare-ass naked now, so I clutch the curtain to my front and peek out into the open area where my clothes are hanging. “What the hell, man?”

The vampire chuckles, then I hear several other laughs as feet slap against the tile floor. “Sydney, we’re all getting rinsed off. You can’t have thought we were going to the lecture smelly, right?”

I didn’t think I’d be naked in the shower inches away from all of them, that’s for goddamn sure!

“I suppose that makes sense, but I wasn’t prepared for you all to come in here while I’m showering, Sebastian,” I retort. “Talking to you while I’m naked isn’t my idea of a comfortable situation.”

“True. I’m not usually doing a lot of ‘talking’ when I’m naked with people,” he muses, and I hear Elias snort. Soon, Huck and Rory join him, and I wait to see if Thad does as well. He might be too far away, but that doesn’t matter to the vampire. “However, I’d prefer a less pressing timeline than what we have before the coaching. That’s why we’re all in here together, obviously.”

Wrinkling my nose at his perfectly acceptable answer, I step back into my hot as hell shower and start scrubbing myself quickly. We don’t have time to waste, so I’m moving this along, but I’m not happy about it. “Fine. Keep to your little chambers, and I’ll keep to mine, boys. I can nurse my pride on my own.”

“Improving your skills is not something to feel ashamed of.” The dragon’s voice is loud enough to be heard over the water, and a few hums of agreement reach me as well.

I know he’s right, but losing to Sebastian makes it smart more. Being the non-super power gal in the middle is hard enough without the snarky guy I want to throttle whooping my ass. That I was turned on by it rubs salt even further in the ego wound, and I’d sooner run a sword through my gut than let anyone find that out. So yeah, I’m bitter and I’d prefer to brood in private.

Yet another thing I won’t get because we’re fucking chess pieces, not people to these fuckers.

“Vicious, the dragon’s got a point. Your bear may not be fast, but he’s got a killer right hook. I’m gonna bruise,” Rory whines as the rest of them laugh. “It’s not funny, you guys. I’m the prettiest of the bunch, and that’s an important weapon. Don’t mark the face next time.”

Thad snorts from what must be the farthest shower. “Then don’t make cheeky remarks to rile me up, mage. You asked for it.”

I frown. “What cheeky remarks?”

“Nothing!”

The word is a five-part harmony chorusing their reluctance to tell me what made my teddy bear friend get rougher than usual while sparring. I don’t believe it for a second and if they weren’t naked, they’d be standing in front of me with pie plates for halos, I bet. No woman alive would be dumb enough to let that bullshit ride. “Fine, keep it to yourselves, jerks. But if you step over the line with this macho horseshit, I’m going to be really pissed. Pushing one another is okay—we need that. Tormenting one another into being too rough is another. Rory and Thad lose ten points.”

Their groans make me smile as I scrub off the rest of the workout grime and rinse the conditioner they provided out of my hair. By the time I’m opening my stall to grab my towel, the grumbles are finally dying down. I dry myself from head to toe, then use all the stupid lotions and sprays to ensure I’m smooth and smell like flowers.

“What is that scent?”

My brow furrows as Sebastian asks his question in a strangled tone. The scents of the perfume are gardenia and currant with jasmine and citrus. He’s smelled it before, so I don’t know why he’s being a weirdo. “My shower gel and lotion? It’s the stuff they told me I have to wear. Nothing new. What’s your problem?”

“No.” His voice is low and dark as he snarls at me. “Something else. You need to… check your towels.”

What the fuck?

“Stop being creepy, asshole. How did you know I’m drying off? Are you looking? I’ll gut you?—”

A loud cough echoes off the walls of the shower room and I hear Elias say, “You turned your shower off, little rebel. But… the vampire is correct. Do as he suggests. Now .”

I roll my eyes, irritated at their apparent need to tell me what to do. When I look down at the white, fluffy cotton, my eyes widen. There’s blood on it and since Sebastian didn’t injure me, I’ve somehow gotten my first period in months. Luckily for me, I made certain to put the supplies they provided in my bedroom, but that was supposed to be an ‘emergency’ rip cord.

Why the hell is this happening now? I’m not due for my implant change, nor the magic renewal yet.

“Motherfucker,” I growl as I look around carefully, then deal with the situation. Pulling my clothes on quickly, I gather up my stuff and stomp to my locker to put my kit away. This is the most annoying thing that could have happened and here I am, trying not to die of embarrassment that a fucking vampire had to tell me about it. The existence of my period doesn’t make me upset, of course; that’s normal for women. I just didn’t want to share it with a dude I want to punch ninety percent of the time.

“Are you okay, sweet pea?”

Huck is trying to be kind, but it just makes me more upset. “I’m fine. Finish up and meet me at the damn lecture. I need some space.”

Before any of them can protest, I sling my bag over my arm and speed walk out of the locker room. Brick and Lancaster try to speak when I rush out, but I ignore them to get the hell away from this entire situation. As I stride down the hallway towards our next session, my emotions threaten to overflow and I have to take deep breaths to push everything behind the mask again. I’ll need to go see the damned doctor today; that’s a given when the things I used to control seem to fail much earlier than normal.

Just what I wanted to do during my dinner and free time tonight—fuck my life.